Whole Wheat Flaxseed Banana Nut Bread

I love banana bread-don't you? I have a collection of three or four recipes I alternate whenever I feel the urge for some bread. This recipe is by far the healthiest of the three! It should be noted that I enjoy the whole grain flavor of this bread, while my husband prefers my "Gift of the Magi Bread." It is a sweet banana bread chock full of maraschino cherries, chocolate chips, coconut, mandarin oranges, and dates. However.... 

As I mentioned on my last post, after my injury, I researched healthy foods for joints. One of the recommended foods was flaxseed. Also, baked goods and white bread were discouraged. So, I tried to make my whole wheat banana bread recipe a little better for me by adding flaxseed meal. I tried this two ways: The loaf on the left was made by replacing 1/4 of the white flour with flaxseed. The loaf on the right was made by replacing the egg with 1 T flaxseed and 3 T water. As you can see, the loaf on the left turned out best. So, I'm going to give you that recipe-you're welcome.

Whole Wheat Flaxseed Banana Nut Bread

1/2  c. butter

1 c. brown sugar

1 egg

1 t. vanilla

1 c. whole wheat flour

1/4 c. flaxseed meal

3/4 c. all purpose flour

1/2 t. salt

3/4 t. cinnamon

1/2 t. nutmeg

1/8 t. cloves

1 1/4 c. ripe bananas

2 T. milk
1/4 c. walnuts, chopped

Preheat the oven to 350. Cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl. Beat in egg and vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix together the dry ingredients. In another small bowl, whisk the banana and milk together. Alternate adding the dry ingredients with the banana to the creamed butter/sugar mixture. Spoon into greased loaf pan. Sprinkle with nuts. Bake 55 to 60 min. After removing from oven, let sit 10 minutes before removing to a cooling rack.